Louis Walsh has revealed this IS the end of One Direction – for five years at least.

The former X Factor judge, who helped put the band together five years ago when they auditioned as solo artists on the show, wasn’t shocked when they announced they’re are taking a break.

Breaking hearts all around the world, Mullingar lad Niall Horan, 21, and his pals Harry Styles, 21, Louis Tomlinson, 23, and 21-year-old Liam Payne revealed on Sunday that they are going their separate ways for at least a year from next March.

But boyband boss Louis, 63, told the Irish Mirror it could be five years before devastated One Direction fans see the global superstars back together on stage.

One Direction (Image: WireImage)

And with decades of experience in the industry, the Mayo music mogul said the boys were doing the right thing bowing out when they are at the top of their game. He said: “All the greats did it, like Westlife and Take That.

“It’s the best way to go out when you go out on a high and they have been phenomenal.

“They are global stars and their success has been amazing.

“It’s not the end, they will give it five or six years I’d imagine and then they will get back together.”

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Louis, who helped put One Direction together with close pal and former X Factor judge Nicole Scherzinger in 2010, claimed the lads “weren’t great” as solo artists but that together they were something special.

He added: “They have a connection with young kids like I’ve never seen before.

“I’ve never seen that connection with any other band.

“Nothing has gone wrong, it’s just that they need a break.

“Touring constantly is exhausting and draining and you do get on each other’s nerves so it’s good to take time out.

One Direction (Image: WireImage)

“And they’re doing the right thing going out on a high and leaving the door open.

"For me, Harry will be the biggest star, Liam is a brilliant songwriter and producer so he might go down that route while Louis might go into management or buy a record label.

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Former Westlife star Markus Feehily said he thinks One Direction got sick of the pressure and the workload that go with being “the most famous lads in the world”.

Markus, 35, added: “They’re part of a massive machine, there is no doubt about that.

“There will be a lot of times when they feel like products.

“They will definitely be getting sick of it, the workload. The powers that be will want them to go to all these countries, they will be spread very thinly and they won’t be given much time for themselves.”

And Markus, who has launched a solo career, speculated that tensions within the group may have led to Zayn Malik, 22, quitting earlier this year.

Zayn Malik (Image: Splash)

Speaking on RTE Radio 1’s Morning Ireland, he said: “A lot of the time it ends in tears.

“Obviously when Zayn left recently it wasn’t because he was loving life, it was because there were problems.”

In a later interview on 2fm’s Breakfast Republic, Markus quipped that Brian McFadden was Westlife’s Zayn because he walked away from the band in 2004.